


A New Adventure

by Fellusion



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell, Alternate Universe - Underswap, Fluff and Angst, chara is like 5, cute shit, may continue depending on the response this gets, nothings happy forever, sans doesnt remember resets, sans is confused, wow what a shocker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-11
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2018-10-17 12:15:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10593819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fellusion/pseuds/Fellusion
Summary: Chara from the Underswap timeline finds themselves somewhere new. Things are much meaner here, but that doesn't make them any less determined to befriend them!... Sans finds a weird child in the forest.





	1. The Start

Chara walked down the path. They didn't remember resetting so they were rather curious about what was going on. They shivered, feeling the cold snowdin air against their skin. Maybe they’d ask Sans and Papy when they get to their house! Maybe Papy would take them to Muffet’s again!

“Hey who the fuck are you?”

The child was taken out of their thoughts, but their expression became even more energized and excited, recognizing the short skeleton and running up to him. They were rather short, the top of their head only reaching the bottom of his ribcage. Being five had its advantages and disadvantages, they’d say. "It's me! Chara!" They said, hugging the skeleton. Hm, they didn’t remember Sans having black shorts or red shoes...

He pushed them off immediately. Well that was different from usual. "Get off me, kid. Not so fast." He got into a defensive position, growling. "If you think you're gonna trick me that easily you're gonna have to try harder than that."

“Tricks are mean! I would never!” Chara argued back in a small, high-pitched voice.

"It's kill or be killed, kid. You should know that by now, if you’ve gotten this far,” he frowned, watching the stubborn little child. They didn't look like the battle-hardened kind... Maybe they really weren't trying to kill him. He shook off that thought. That's what they wanted him to think.

"P- Please….. I don’t wanna kill! Killing is bad! Asgore said so," the five year old sniffled, staring up at the skeleton with wide eyes. He stared, emotionless.

“your waterworks aren’t gonna water-’work’ on me, kid.” He mentally pat himself on the back for that pun, watching the child as they processed it. They stared up at him, confused, before bursting into giggles. They stayed like that for a while, as if they had just heard the funniest joke in the world. A few seconds of silence afterwards and a strong gust of wind blew past, the child hugging themselves close as they shivered. He sighed, cursing his empathy. What a stupid little kid. He slipped off his jacket, hesitantly walking over and wrapping it around them. He flinched as they moved, worried that this was a bad decision and the child would chose to attack once he got close enough. None came.

He grumbled, holding his hand out in a welcoming manner. "lets get you somewhere safe then, alright? it’s dangerous out here in the woods.". He wasn't smiling, but his eyes were softer than before, not as piercing or intimidating. Chara snuggled into the jacket and nodded, wiping their eyes and gently taking his hand. Poor kid didn’t deserve to be in a cruel place like this. He sighed, gathering up enough magic to teleport to his room. He led the kid to his mattress, a little deflated but it functioned properly. "uh, just stay here alright? don't go outside this room, no matter what you hear. i'll come back with some food, okay?" He rubbed the bridge of his nose. Why was he doing this again? Oh yeah, because he's an empathetic little shit. He could almost hear his brother’s yelling from here. He tried to wave off the oncoming anxiety-induced headache before giving the kid a tight grin.

Chara smiled at him. "Okay! Thank you Sans!" They hop off the mattress and once again hugged the skeleton. Sans doesn’t push them away this time, instead just sighing, letting it happen. They returned to the mattress quickly after, their little feet making a pitter-patter sound throughout the room.

"i'll be right back, don't worry kid." He gathered up magic again and was gone in a flash. Wait, how did the kid know his name?

\---

The child waited for 30 minutes, 1 hour, 3 hours. Sans hadn’t returned. They were getting worried, but they had said they wouldn’t go outside, so they just sat there on the bed, playing with the sheets. They heard a door slam, shaking the whole house. There were sounds of footsteps stomping downstairs, they assumed, and an angry voice yelling various things. There were many words Chara could not understand, but they listened regardless. They thought it could’ve been Sans returning, and he had stubbed his toe or something. A part of them reminded themselves that they had promised not to go outside the room, but it wasn’t outside was it? They were just opening the door! They sneaked towards the door and turned the doorknob. Much to their dismay, the door was old and squeaked quite loudly as it opened. They froze, seeing that Sans was there, but there was another skeleton there as well. The one that was yelling… Papy?

Sans was in the middle of an argument with his brother, as usual. About what, he didn't know, didn't care. It was always in through one "ear" out through the other, heh. But he felt himself freeze as he heard the door to his room open and the soft voice. Papyrus turned aggressively towards the noise and Sans, quick to act, teleported in front of the door where Chara was, blocking them from view. "WHAT WAS THAT?" Sans let out some forced laughter. "i-its nothing bro, just some... some... really drafty door. you know how shitty our house is." Papyrus’ mood did not waver from anger, and it, in fact, go worse. Oh boy was he in for it. Papyrus started yelling again, something about being useless, walking up the stairs to where he stood. At this point Sans had pushed Chara back through the door and shut it. Sans could only lay against it, trying to avoid eye contact.

Chara had been covering their ears behind the door for a while now. It seemed Sans had started to yell as well, finally snapping. There was a lot of banging and screaming and all it did was remind Chara of… of… They shook their head. Things went silent and Chara opened their eyes and uncovered their ears. A loud bang echoed and there was a choked scream coming from… someone. Chara yanked the door open without a second thought. They heard a thump.

"S-stop! Please don't hurt anyone!" They yelled, holding their hands up in a halting motion. Their eyes widened. Sans had fallen backwards through the doorway and was on the ground, coughing and sputtering. Papyrus was staring at the human, shocked. "P-p-Papy? What are you doing?" They had noticed for a while now, things were much different here. Papyrus and Sans were… different. Why were they different? What happened? Why was Papyrus being so mean! He used to just lounge around and take them to muffets from time to time.They gently pulled at Sans’ form, attempting to help. Their tiny arms couldn’t do much though. "Please stop hurting him!” they said, turning to Papyrus.

It was a kid. A small, defenseless kid. And here he thought it was some stupid waste of money Sans had bought. He looked down at his hands, bewildered at his actions. He didn’t mean to… it was just an instinctive action. His grip tightened, looking back at the two. "SANS... YOU'VE BEEN HIDING A HUMAN... FROM ME?" he said in disbelief.

Sans got up, albeit slowly, and coughed a little before speaking. "d-don't hurt the kid, paps. please. they're just a kid. they're... just a kid..." He tried to get between the kid and Papyrus, but stumbled, still weakened from being choked for so long. He groaned, "f-fuck..."

"Do you need to lay down Sans?" They said, having obviously pushed any fear they had aside. They smile up at Papyrus sweetly. "Thank you for stopping! But you should know, it's very mean to hurt people! You wouldn't like it if someone hurt you! So you shouldn't hurt others! Golden rule! Do to others what you want done to you!" They ended it with a confident huff, standing as tall as their little body could.

Papyrus only blinked. Once. Twice. God, this kid was serious. He stepped forward, making Sans flinch a little. "I COULD KILL YOU RIGHT NOW, HUMAN. I COULD CRUSH YOUR LITTLE BODY WITH MY BARE HANDS. DO YOU REALLY THINK I CARE WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK ABOUT HOW I ACT? THIS IS HOW YOU SURVIVE IN THIS WORLD." He glared down at Sans, his temper spilling over the edge again. "AND YOU... YOU ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE ONCE I GET THIS HUMAN'S SOUL DELIVERED TO UNDYNE." Sans sputtered, trying to come up with an excuse to stop him from doing so, but failing. He managed to get himself balanced and on his feet again, but it was quite shaky. There was no way he could fight Papyrus in this state.

"you can't do this papyrus. they're just a kid..." His expression hardened, an air of confidence taking him over. He was about to do something so stupid, wasn’t he? "you won’t even spare the soul of this small child. is a child really worth our freedom? i… i can’t let you do this papyrus.” He grabbed the child's hand tightly, gathering up magic. Papyrus' eyes widened and he reached out to catch sans before a flash and he simply stumbled forward into thin air. He stared down at his hands. Why did he always have to chose the most idiotic of paths.

"DAMMIT..."

The child looks around and looks at Sans. "Why'd you do that? I think I could've helped!" The child smiles at Sans and hugs his hand close and gently. They look around the area they were teleported and they smiled widely at the realization. It was waterfall! That meant Alphys was here! But then their expression dropped. This wasn’t the world they knew… Alphys wouldn’t be here, would she? Sans scoured the area, hoping one of the lesser-known parts of the marsh could be used to pass through undetected. There was a risk, though. He just hoped he wouldn’t have to face it head on. Going into the uncharted marsh was dangerous. He didn’t know the area, so he couldn’t teleport even if they were in danger. He ground his teeth. The kid couldn’t keep hopping around with him. It was taking a toll on his body. He looked down at the child with pity. "you're too good for this place kid. he would've killed you. it isn't all sunshine and rainbows around here alright?" He led them through Waterfall, pushing their screaming child body into bushes whenever they needed cover from other monsters. He was certain Papyrus had alerted Undyne of their presence here in Waterfall. They had to be careful.

It had been a few days now, and they were getting by okay, with food stolen from Gerson, hiding places hard to find. They often sat and listened to the water rush. Chara was a very boisterous kid, but they were good at keeping quiet when they needed to. Even with all the consequences and stress weighing down on Sans, it was almost... pleasant? He wasn't waking up to the sound of screaming and the smell of dust, but to the soft snoring of the smaller, weak human. The kid with the smile worth a thousand gold and the optimistic attitude, despite the crushing world around them. He almost envied them, at times.

During one of their treks through the marsh, Chara saw a field of echo flowers. They gasped happily and let go of Sans’ hand, running up to the flowers and picking them gleefully. It was quite goofy seeing them hold the giant flowers in their arms, far taller than their small figure. They sat down in the middle of the area they had picked and laid them all out, whispering into each one before creating a bracelet of some sort. Jewelry maybe? Whatever this small child’s imagination was thinking of at the time. Sans watched, amused. Chara picked flowers continuously, inventing new kinds of jewelry.

A certain “bracelet” they had created they had decided to give to Sans, bounding over in pride. It fell apart in the few seconds it took for Sans to get it on, but he kept it anyway, laughing. He stuffed it in his pocket, chuckling to himself. Before he was able to ask them what they were making these for, a bright spear jammed itself in the ground next to Chara. Sans scrambled up, stumbling over and grabbing Chara by the hand, running as fast as he could. "shitshitshitshit-" He should've known it was a bad idea, letting his guard down like that. They were out in the open now and he could hear the humming of the spears as they whizzed by him.

The child was confused, but let themselves get dragged along anyway. They pouted a little, mourning the loss of all that jewelry. "Sans what's wrong? Why are we running? We can makes friends with whoever that was!" They held on tightly to their last creation, a small echo flower necklace. They had whispered their thanks into it to give to Sans. The bracelet was just a prototype. Maybe they could give it to him once they stopped running.

"just keep running kid. it’s undyne. she's... she probably heard from my bro. she's gonna kill us both if we stop. i'm sorry kid... but there's no friendship to be made here." He turned a corner, but it was a dead end. Shit. Shitshitshitshit- His mind raced as Undyne rounded the corner with them, grimacing at the two. "I’ve got you now, Sans!" She summoned a spear again, dramatically walking forward. "Keeping a human for yourself now? That's just selfish! It's meant to be shared with ALL OF US!" She emphasized the last part with a spear, thrown right next to Sans' head. He was sweating now. This was it. He fucked up and now they were going to die.

Chara’s expression turned to a stern one, and they walked up to Undyne, wagging their finger. Sans felt his soul drop. Kid, no. "Now now, miss Undyne that isn't nice at all. You shouldn't hurt people! You shouldn't threaten people! You should be nice! Being mean doesn't get anyone anywhere in life! What's the point of being mean anyway? You won't have friends, people won't like you. You'll get very lonely. So...if you stop threatening Sans, I'll be your friend!" They smile and offered their hand.

“kid, wait-”

Undyne cut him off before he could say too much. Her grin widened, an evil glint in her eye. “Y'know what, sure. Let’s be friends! Let’s frolic in the fields together and be all happy and shit!" She summoned another spear, readying it in her hands. Sans could only watch as Undyne stood tall, smirking.

“How about a game of catch, then?” She put her arm back, and Sans was too far, and time was moving too fast, and he couldn’t _do anything-_

 

The spear hit Chara square in the chest, and they let out a tiny shriek, falling backwards. Sans ran forward as fast as he could, but skidded to a stop as Undyne pointed the spear in his direction. "One more step and you're dust." He stared down his body unable to process the immense feeling of sorrow taking him over as the once cheerful child became stained red. Their soul floated out of their body and-

 

 **[GAME OVER]** **  
**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chara walked down the path, a little less energetic than before. They just wanted to hug Sans, tell him that it was alright. Tell him that they were okay. They called his name out as they walked, hugging themselves in a weak attempt to gain warmth. Sans was watching from the treeline, confused. Who the fuck was this kid and what were they doing calling out his name in the middle of the goddamn forest? He stepped forward, grunting as usual.

"Hey who the fuck are you?"


	2. The Dilemma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans is very confused. Chara is upset. Maybe things will be alright, though. Maybe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter as requested! I was not expecting such a positive reception but I really hope you guys like it!

The child squealed with excitement when they saw Sans approach them. He’s okay!! They ran up to him, hugging him tightly. Their words came out in a jumbled mess of excitement.  "Sans! Are you okay? Miss Undyne didn't hurt you while I fixed stuff, did she?" They stared up at him with sweet, hopeful eyes. Sans pushed them away, confused. Chara held back their need to pout at that. They hoped it wasn’t what they thought had happened...

"w- what the fuck? who are you? what are you talking about?" He laughed a little, nervously. "you must have the wrong guy because... i have no idea what you're talking about."

The child couldn’t hold back this time. They huffed, crossing their arms and looking up at Sans with angry eyes. "You know who I am Sans! I- it's me! Chara! We were in Waterfall...I was m- making you a necklace… and then..." Their lip started to quiver and their eyes watered up as they continued to remember what had happened. They still felt bad about that. Poor Sans had to watch them die right in front of him. Did… did he even remember though?

"w-woah kid calm down there..." He felt like he was repeating himself... but he didn't know why. "i... i still don't know what you're talking about. maybe i should get you somewhere safer... these woods are pretty dangerous if you stay out for too long." He slipped his jacket off and wrapped it around the child before kneeling, holding his hand out. A memory flashed in his mind but he waved it off. "cmon, kid." The child snuggled into the jacket, though instead of taking his hand like last time, they ran into his kneeled form and hugged him gently. "I- its me...w- why don't you remember? Please remember!" They looked up at him, a last resort to getting him to remember, tears streaming down their cheeks. They didn’t want to have to go through this all again! They wanted to hug Sans and play in the snow with him! Sans averted his gaze, teleporting them to his room. 

"you can... stay in my room alright? just... don't leave the room... no matter what noises you hear, alright?" He wrung his hands, staring at the kid. A long silence followed. Sans was pacing, wringing his hands together so much that it probably hurt. After some minutes, he cleared his throat, stopping his pacing to look at the kid. "why do you think you know me so well? you act as if we've known eachother for a lot longer than just a few minutes..." He hated to admit it, but he also felt that way. He couldn’t… place why though.

The child plopped onto the bed. "C-cause we have! You brought me to your room, and I told Papy to stop hurting you… then you took me to Waterfall… and Miss Undyne got me..." Sans looked at the ground thoughtfully before looking back to the child. What was going on here? There was no way a kid could just make all of this up. The only reasonable excuse would be... 

"you.... are you a time traveler or something? i mean... why would i not remember but you do?" He thought hard, trying to think of any other memories he had of the child before they had first met in the forest, but he came up blank, aside from a few fuzzy images. He did though, after a thought, trust the kid in a heartbeat, unlike how he probably should have reacted. Kill or be killed, after all. Chara thought for a moment, tapping their chin. That was a cool way to put it, actually. Time traveller. 

They thought of a general summary of what to say and then opened their mouth. "Sorta? If I die… I can go back to before I died, but I dunno why you don't remember… I was hoping you would..." They kicked their legs against the mattress, a frustrated look on their face. They should have saved while they were in Waterfall! But, they hadn’t seen a single save point since they got here…

Sans thought for a moment, looking at the child with a sad stare. "so you... died...?" The realization was a little… worrying. How many times had this kid died before? Something in the back of his head knew how the kid died. He couldn't quite place why, or how. Something blue, something red. Blended together into a dance of death. He was snapped out of his thoughts as he saw the small child raise their arms. He grumbled. This kid wanted something, but what the fuck was it? He stared down, a confused look on his face. Chara tightly hugged themselves, looking to the side with puffed cheeks. “I want you to pick me up…” They said after a moment of awkward silence.

Sans sat there for moment, dumbfounded, but rubbed one of his arms. Human customs were weird… Maybe the kid wanted to feel tall? I mean, they were really short. He finally nodded, albeit still confused, kneeling down and picking the kid up, lifting them up high. Chara filled the room with laughter, smiling happily. That moment, while it only lasted for a moment, left Chara full of energy. They felt a rush of determination and a save point appeared in the room. Their eyes sparkled. Finally!

He let the kid down and stood back, eyes wide as he saw a bright yellow light from the corner of his eye. “woah…”  He watched them bound over towards where he assumed it was. He didn’t remember that being there. It felt like it wasn’t real though, as he could only see the object from the corner of his eye. What was it? 

Chara was so excited! Now Sans wouldn’t forget about them! However, as they saved, the screen glitched for a moment, showing their LV at 19 and their name shifted to something else. The save was unstable. They didn’t think too much of it, since everything in this world was weird, after all. The child skipped back to Sans, tapping him excitedly.

“I saved! Now when I die I’ll come back here!” Sans’ eyes widened. Well. That’s an optimistic way of saying that they’re probably gonna die. He smiled, tense as he realized what kind of hell he was getting himself into. He was literally keeping a small human child in his room. The underground had six souls. One more and Asgore would become a god and break the barrier. But… He looked at the kid. Something about this kid’s optimistic personality, their need to help others… It made him think that maybe the kid didn’t have to die to save them. He turned around, with the intention of getting some food for the kid, but he felt a tug on his jacket before he could even say anything. "Please don't go out to get me food! I ate before I woke up on the path to Snowdin! If you go out...you'll get hurt..." He felt a pressure around his neck. A past wound that never happened. He rubbed at it, confused.

"you read my mind like a book haha…” He said, realizing that this all had probably  happened before. He pitied this poor child. Sitting down on the bed, the two looked at each other with varying expressions. Chara’s eyes lit up like the fake stars in Waterfall as they realized Sans’ choice. He smiled a little nervously. Paps was gonna kill him. "well, you're gonna get bored just sitting there, you got any ideas of what to do? i can bring you pencil and paper if you'd like." Chara squealed, hugging him tightly, their idea becoming reality. Maybe he wouldn’t be hurt this time! “I don't want you to leave the room… Papy was mean to you last time..." They climbed onto Sans’ lap and smiled at him brightly. "Besides, I can keep myself from getting bored! Promise!"

**“** ya promise huh? promise is a strong word, kid" He ruffles their hair, once again bemused by their boundless optimism. He grinned, getting an idea and flopping backwards onto the mattress. "welp, i'm taking a nap. see ya in a few hours. hahah." Chara giggled, rolling off of his lap, which was no longer as comfortable as before. "Okay! Sleep well!" They pat his skull gently. Sans looked almost surprised. He was expecting a pout or a scream of anger, but none came. He shrugged, taking this chance to actually take a nap. The second he closed his eyes he fell into a comfortable sleep.

 

\---

He awoke a few hours later. He almost didn’t remember that there was a human kid in his room until his mind cleared. Where was the kid? It was… too quiet. He sat up quickly, a little worried that they had run off while he was sleeping. As scary as he was, the kid would be killed in no time on their own. "k...kid?" He rubbed his eye(sockets) trying to get a better look at the room, "kid you still there?" His eyes opened a little, narrowly scanning the room. After a few breathtaking moments, he heard a little muffled giggle and his soul calmed down. Thank the stars. 

Chara smiled and popped out from the closet. "Boo!" They pitter-pattered over to him, laughing. He sighed but a small smile formed. What a stupid little kid. He ruffled their hair again, untangling himself from the covers that he had wrapped himself in while he was sleeping. 

"has papyrus come home yet? god i hope not." He rubbed his head, a headache forming, probably from the dream he had. He vaguely felt the remainder of a pressure around his neck again. He looked at Chara, noticing the colored liquid stuck to their face. "what’re you drinking, kid?" 

"The juice was in the fridge! Way in the back!" The adopt a confident pose, seemingly proud of themselves. Sans rubbed the back of his skull nervously.

"so you’re allowed to leave the room but i’m not?” He allowed himself to laugh before looking a little more relaxed. “hopefully it’s still good. who knows how old it could have been. i don't think paps has bought juice in forever." He looked down, in thought. His expression took on something more reminiscent. "i wish he never grew up. he used to be so optimistic as a child… kinda like you almost..." He sighed, looking at the door. "he used to promise that he'd protect me when i couldn’t protect myself anymore. i guess in a way he is... but... it’s not in a way that's healthy for either of us. i still love him... i just he wouldn’t yell at me so much. he thinks it helps keep me from getting killed and stay alive, but it drains me more than helps… plus his short fuse makes him a little more… aggressive towards me than he means." He closed his eyes, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down. "sorry you had to hear that, kid... i'm not one to... talk about my problems." Chara looked up at Sans, patting his cheekbone in an odd, comforting gesture. 

"Maybe you should talk to him about that then? Talking things out always makes things better!” They said, confidently looking into his eyes. Sans couldn’t help but look away.

"i... i feel like he would just... yell at me more, y'know? plus i don't wanna hurt his feelings... he's been doing this for years and i never said a thing. i think... he thinks it motivates me..." He placed his chin on Chara's head, putting a little pressure on it, but not enough to hurt. "you really think it would work? you're pretty optimistic for a kid who's literally felt what it’s like to die."

Chara giggled, using their arms to push Sans off of their head. “Get off of me you bone head!” They both laughed, easing the tension a little. Chara sat for a moment after laughing for so long, catching their breath "The only thing that scares me about dying is that you'll forget me when I come back… I guess that isn’t a problem anymore since I saved!" They looked proud again, but saw that Sans was still deep in thought. “Are you still thinking about Papy? You should really tell him how you feel. What’s the worse that can happen?” They then remembered what had happened last time and shivered. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea. They shook their head. The echoed words of “Stay Determined!” bounced through their head again. They wanted to make things right for those two.

Sans looked at them, a little more hopeful than before. "... i guess so huh..." He sat there for a while, just staring at the wall ahead of him. And then he heard a door slam. 

"...shit... c-can i really do this?" He held tightly onto the kid’s arms. The kid squinted, feeling a little bit of pain from how hard he was gripping, but knowing he really needed this. He was whispering now, sweat beading on his forehead. The anxiety was making his dizzy, but he had to do this. It was now or never. "...it'll... it'll be fine. just... just stay in the room. i'll be back." He picked up Chara, placing them gently on the bed before getting up and walking to the door. He took one last look at Chara, smiling before opening the door and leaving. A faint "sup, bro?" made it through the muffled door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I get really excited by kudos and comments since this is my first actual posted fic! If you want me to continue just let me know and the next chapter will be up in a bit!


	3. An Unlikely Happening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans is a ball of anxiety. And so am I.

Chara ran to the door, sitting beside it, leaning an ear against the door. They hoped it wasn’t going to be like last time. This time Sans went in with a plan though! So things should be fine… right?

Sans showed a weak smile, walking down the stairs. “sup bro?” Papyrus glared at him, pointing aggressively.

“YOU MISSED YOUR SHIFT AT SENTRY DUTY TODAY!” Oh shit. Right. He forgot. He scratched his head, laughing nervously.

“yeaaah paps… i guess i just… overslept?” It took no time at all for Papyrus to start his normal lecturing. Sans just tried to block it out. He could do this.

“YOU SHOULD BE GLAD THAT I’M THE HEAD OF THE ROYAL GUARD, OTHERWISE THEY WOULD HAVE DUSTED YOU!” Sans cringed at that. He knew Papyrus loved using his position as evidence for his “greatness” or whatever. After all, Sans was just a lowly sentry. Papyrus asked something expecting an answer, standing tall before him. This was his moment. He could do this. He could do this. 

Sans took a large breath, exhaling a few times before he opened his mouth. “papyrus can… can i talk to you about something?” Sans was grinding his teeth, fighting with all his power to resist the urge to run back upstairs and pretend this never happened. Papyrus looked surprised almost, a small look of worry flashing across his face before he settled back into his normal judgemental demeanor.

“MAKE IT QUICK. I DON’T HAVE ALL DAY,” he complained, crossing his arms. Sans squeaked a little. He hadn’t expected Papyrus to actually listen to him. He was expecting to just get thrown aside again, like he always was. He wrung his hands, laughing nervously. God he needed to stop doing that. Papyrus’ expression turned to confusing as the skeleton before him shrunk into himself more and more. As a last resort, Sans decided he’d pretend he was talking to Chara, like he was upstairs. Pretended that Papyrus wasn’t there, listening to his every word- He took another breath.

“w…. well… i uh… just wanted to say that… i… okaybye-” He turned around, his mind shifting into blind panic, all plans going out the window. He stiffly began to walk up the stairs, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder, a bad choice on Papyrus’ part. Sans couldn’t help but scream, his panic reminding him of his previous experiences. He spun around as fast as he could, falling onto one of the steps on the stairs and covering his face with his arms. “p- please i’m sorry don’t hurt me-” Papyrus’ eyes widened as he snatched back his hand as if he touched hot iron. They both stayed there for a long while, Sans crumbling into a sobbing mess and Papyrus just… staring. He didn’t know how to react to this. His brother was always strong! He was always fine and content, after all his younger brother was protecting him! ...Right? He was scared to step forward, so he just tried to communicate from where he was standing. It was the first time he had spoken in a quiet voice in quite a while.

“Sans…?”

Sans’ head jerked up at his name, tears still streaming down his face. He violently rubbed at them, trying to shrug it off with a laugh. “im fine paps don’t worry about me, alright? now i’m just going to go back upstairs and get some shut eye o-”

“Sans.”

“and we can just pretend this never happened! don’t worry about me after all, i’m always fine with everything. a- and-”

“Sans!”

Papyrus was looking at him, eyes full of worry. Sans stopped his babbling, sealing his mouth shut. 

“Please, brother. What did you want to say?” He kneeled down, looking Sans in the eye. Sans almost laughed, remembering how he used to do the same thing all those years ago. He couldn’t look him in the eye though. Everything was so quiet… much more quiet than usual. He sighed. He could do this.

“i... i’m so sorry papyrus… i’m sorry i never told you anything i just… i didn’t want to hurt you. you’ve gotten so far and i don’t want myself to be the reason you fall.” Papyrus was listening with intent, he was listening.  _ He was listening. _ He started to gain more confidence; he was already started, why not continue? “i- its just you… i can’t stand being yelled at so much… a- and i know its supposed to help me become stronger but… it really  _ isn’t. _ i feel like i’m falling apart here… and… you’re the main reason. i just need  _ one _ person to be supportive… is that so hard to ask? i get enough shit from everyone else in town, why do i need it from you too?”

Papyrus just stayed silent the whole time. His expression turned from worry to guilt, looking down at his hands as if he had just committed a crime. Tears started flowing from Sans’ eyes again as he talked, though it didn’t choke him up as much as he thought it would. Papyrus scooted forward, inch by inch. He wanted to do something to make him feel better… but he was nervous. Simply touching him was enough to send him into a fit of tears… His voice came out weak and small.

“Can… can I hug you?” Sans’ eyes grew wide, looking straight into his brother’s. He was being serious. He could’ve cried all over again as he nodded his head slowly. Papyrus leaned forward, wrapping his arms around him in an awkward hug. Neither of them had done it in years. 

“I’m sorry I never knew how much it hurt you… I wish you would have told me sooner... “ His voice was coated with tears. Papyrus was never much of a crier. Sans hugged him back, savoring the moment as much as he could. Something told him this would be happening a lot more often, though. He wiped his eyes, pushing Papyrus back to do so. They both looked each other in the eyes. Life would be a lot more different from now on. Neither of them would have to keep up appearances while in the comfort of their own home… Sans still worried of how he would act while Papyrus was around, and he let him know that. Papyrus vowed to be better for his brother. God, his brother really was the coolest.

“i guess its time for the second secret of the day.” Sans laughed again, rubbing the back of his head. Papyrus cocked his head to the side, another look of worry showing on his face. “no, no its not as bad as what just happened… just… don’t hate me okay?"

Papyrus let out a small “I would never hate you” before following him up the stairs. Sans simply knocked on the door. “Isn’t this your room?” Papyrus questioned curiously.

“yeah. but uh… i found someone new… don’t freak out too loudly i don’t want the whole town to go crazy.” He opened the door, a small hand curling around it to pull it open more. Papyrus’ eyes grew wider and wider as the small figure came into view. Papyrus did as much as he could to keep in his excitement, instead letting himself squeal silently as he hopped on his feet. Sans laughed as he watched his brother look at the human as if it was his birthday gift. 

“BROTHER!!!! Is… is that a…. Human?” He made sure to whisper that last part out, and Sans pat him on the back.

“yeah bro. its a human.” Chara couldn’t help but giggle. This Papy was a lot more like the Sans from where they came from than what they had though. Now that they thought about it… The Sans from this place acted a lot like their Papy… What an odd thought. They couldn’t imagine Sans acting like his brother! Such a lazy bones! Nearby, Papyrus was continuing his giddy emotions, a high pitched noise escaping him.

“IF I BRING THE SOUL TO THE KING HE’LL BE SO PROUD AND EVERYONE WILL LOVE ME-”

“we’re not bringing their soul to the king.”

“WHAT?!” Papyrus turned, perturbed by Sans’ statement as if he had just told him that the barrier had magically opened. Chara scurried behind Sans, worried that this situation would turn violent. Papyrus just looked even more confused, his mind going in circles.

“Why not though?? It’s  _ right there! _ We just have to get its soul and we’ll be set! No one will ever mock us again! We’ll be the richest monsters in the whole underground!”

“they’re just a kid, papyrus. are you sure you’re okay with killing kids?”  
“I mean-”

“don’t answer that question. either way, i have a feeling this kid can save us without the need to simply hand over their soul. they  _ want  _ to save us. can you at least give them a chance? if not, we’ll get the soul in the end anyway. no offense, kid.” Chara gave a small thumbs up. “and then it’ll be fine regardless. sound good?”

Papyrus thought for a moment, deep in thought. He narrowed his eyes at the child, who simply smiled, giving him a double thumbs up. He chuckled. “Alright alright, we can keep this… human alive for now. HOWEVER!” He held his finger up professionally and the two jumped. “YOU ARE REQUIRED TO HELP ME TEST MY HUMAN CAPTURING DEVICES! I NEED TO SEE IF THEY ARE WORTHY OF BEING USED!” Chara’s worried look turned to pure excitement.

“Yeah!” They said, loud and proud. Papyrus let out a proud “NYEHEHEH” before walking off to his room to collect his things. Sans turned to Chara, ruffling their hair again. 

“thanks, kid.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always comments are what drive me to continue! Tell me what you thought of it!


	4. Bonding Time!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What a nice fluffy chapter! I wonder what could come next! *evil grin*
> 
> I actually have a plot now by the way so things from now on will probably be more exciting.

Next thing they knew, they were all outside in the cold. Sans had once again “graciously” offered his coat in these trying times. Chara chuckled at the thought. Papyrus and Sans stood on the other end of the puzzle, Sans watching amused and Papyrus giving a devilish grin. The traps were a lot more… deadly looking than what they were used to. But that wouldn’t deter them! A rush of determination and… another save point! They ran towards it, saving as quick as their little hands could manage. Once again the file flickered, a little more violently, and they swore they could smell something dusty. Chara stared, confused. Hopefully that didn’t mean anything bad. After all, they didn’t want to start over from the beginning again! Papyrus started to speak, pulling them away from their thoughts. They skipped back over to where they began, listening intently to him speak.

“NOW, HUMAN! THIS PUZZLE IS A TRICKY ONE, EXPERTLY CRAFTED BY THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE PAPYRUS! IT IS AN INVISIBLE MAZE! EVERY WRONG TURN WILL GIVE YOU QUITE A TERRIBLE SHOCK! NOW!” He walked around the maze, handing the orb to Chara. “MAKE SURE TO HOLD THIS ORB WHILE YOU TRAVERSE THIS MAZE! OTHERWISE THE SHOCK WON’T WORK!” He walked straight through the maze on the way back, showing that it did not shock when he wasn’t holding the orb. Chara looked at the snow on the ground, looking for a pattern in footprints but found none. They looked back up, a little worried. Sans winked, pointing back down into the snow. Chara looked down, now seeing some small bones sticking out of the ground, enough for their little body to see through the blinding white snow, but not enough for Papyrus. They giggled, following the path of the bones as they moved through the maze. Papyrus simply watched dumbfounded. Chara walked through the maze unscathed.

“HUMAN YOUR PSYCHIC ABILITIES ARE QUITE REFINED FOR YOUR SMALL… STATURE. OTHERWISE YOU WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GUESS THE PATH AS QUICKLY AS THAT. I SUPPOSE THEN… WE SHALL MOVE ONTO THE NEXT PUZZLE!” He laughed maniacally as he ran off. Sans gave the kid a thumbs up.

“good job kid, i think he really likes you.” Chara just laughed.

The rest of their puzzle-solving adventures went along in that fashion, with Sans helping the kid out in as many ways as they could. Papyrus actually caught him one time, turning at Sans and yelling in frustration about ‘botching the results’ or something. Sans shot back a few witty remarks as Chara continued through the puzzle. Papyrus really was enjoying himself though. He looked like he was having fun almost. The human survived, thankfully. There were a few close calls here and there, but Sans always stepped in before they got too hurt. He had to tend to their cuts and scratches after the puzzle solving extravaganza, sitting in the house trying to make sure Chara didn’t get distracted while he was patching them up.

 

\-----

 

Chara was dozing on the couch, watching another episode of MTT while Papyrus cooked food. Sans was playing a game of Solitaire on the coffee table, even though some of the cards were missing. It was still entertaining to a point, he argued. Papyrus exited the kitchen, multiple plates of lasagna being carried, carefully balanced on his arms. He plopped two of them on the table, hesitantly choosing to sit next to his brother on the couch. Sans almost looked surprised. “aren’t you gonna say something about ‘cleanliness’ or something?” Papyrus grimaced.

“Shut the fuck up and eat your lasagna Sans.” Sans grinned, eagerly taking his food and scarfing it down quickly before looking over at the sleeping kid. Papyrus followed his gaze. After a few moments of silent eating, Papyrus looked at Sans, speaking quietly.

“Do you really think this human can free us from the underground?” He asked, a nervous edge to his voice. Sans turned, a little surprised at the sudden question. He stared at his mostly empty plate, tapping his fork against the side in a rhythmic pattern.

“yeah. idunno, its an odd feeling, but when i see the kid, they’ve got so much optimism and really want to help us… yknow? so when they say they’re gonna free us from the underground you can’t help but believe them…” He smiled a little, remembering when they first crossed paths, the child running up and hugging him as soon as he came into sight.

 

“...I don’t want to kill this human, Sans,” he said after a long moment, resigning to whatever mockery would ensue. Sans widened his eyes, almost excitedly, before his expression turned into a shit-eating grin. Oh no. “WHAT?!”

“i didn’t take you for the kind of person to get attached that quickly-”  
“SHUT THE _FUCK_ UP, SANS.”

There was moment of silence before they both broke out into laughter, the tension shattering as fast as it came. The child stirred, squinting their eyes as they pushed themselves up. The two turned to the child, guilty that they had probably been the reason the child was awake.

“Hey Sans? Papy? I’m hungry…” they said quietly, rubbing their eyes. Papyrus promptly pushed the plate of slightly cold lasagna on the table towards Chara. They clapped excitedly, making a few gibberish noises before grabbing the plate and plopping it on their lap, beginning to eat. A few pieces fell from their mouth onto their shirt and Sans chuckled a little. Papyrus simply grumbled about cleanliness before getting up and disappearing to the kitchen before returning with a paper towel, walking onto Chara’s side of the couch and using it to wipe their mouth and the mess on their lap. Chara looked at Papyrus smiling brightly.

“Thank you so much Papy!” Papyrus just looked to the side, mumbling a little. As he walked off, dirty plates in hand, Sans almost thought he saw him smile.

Chara’s expression dropped to something akin to sorrow as they looked at the small table in front of them. Sans looked over, confused. “what’s wrong kid?” They looked up at Sans sadly.

“I had a dream about my other friends… I really miss them…” They played with the sleeve of their shirt, sighing.

“well... what were they like? those uh, other friends of yours.” He asked, curiously. He wondered what kind of differences existed in whatever place they had come from. Was it some kind of alternate universe? The mental gears in his head began to spin as he waited for an answer.

Chara smiled distantly, looking down into their lap. Their friends… Asgore, Sans, Papy, Muffet, Alphys, Undyne, Toriel… They were so close to making it to the surface, but what happened? What went wrong?

“My friends were so nice to me when I first met them. Sans acted more like you brother, actually. He was very friendly though and his puzzles weren’t as, well, deadly.” They laughed at that. “Papy was very laid back, told a lot of puns. He took me to Muffet’s all the time so I had something good to eat. Sans was always complaining though, he said it was unhealthy.” Chara rocked back and forth, deep in thought.

“When I first me Alphys, she tried to kill me. But, with Sans’ help we became super good friends! While… also burning her house down. Undyne was really nervous all the time, but she was really nice too! Napstaton loved the crowd, he was very fun to play with! We were very close to getting to the surface... actually.”

Sans gawked. “the surface?! so you’ve actually managed to do it?!” He perked up, excited. The child nodded.

“We were all ready to walk out-- the barrier had been shattered-- but before we could do it-” A glitched memory flashed before their eyes and they closed them tightly, covering them with their arms. “...something happened.”

Sans jerked forward, putting his hand on their shoulder in case they needed help, they seemed to calm down after a second though, and his grip loosened.

  
...What had happened?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are greatly appreciated! It keeps me writing, heh.


	5. Something Different...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An echo plays from somewhere.

Dust. Dust. More dust. They stared at their hands, one clenched around a knife. They were so close to victory. They would finally eradicate the enemy. They stood straight, looking at Flowey who had, in a desperate attempt to stop them, absorbed the 6 souls. He lost. Of course he’d lose. After all, Frisk had power over saves and resets. They walked to the flower, staring down at him with an emotionless expression. They raised their knife and-

 

Nͩ̍̓ͬ͛̔̇̽̏̓ͬ͗ͭ͊ͥ҉̛̟̗̜͔͘o͚͇͉̟ͤ͂͋͑̉͋̽̋̐ͪ͝t̴̴̯̲̦̩̜̯̠̜͓̝̬͌ͦͯͦͫͫ̿̆͢ͅ ͗̎̐̈̌ͨ͝҉҉̧̙̫̮̮̞̜̜͉̪̜̲̲̯͉̝ͅs̷̶̢̧̜̹̳͉̟̰̰̬̪͔̟̩̲̠͉͈͗ͩ̉ͯo̘͇̟̫̻̖̻̤̱̠̹̣̯͖͇͆ͣ̀͒͟͞ͅͅ ̨̡̟͚̱͈̺̤̝̭͖͔̑ͥͪ̒ͫ̒͝f͓͔͎̘͍͕̆ͯ̓̆ͨ̉ͨ͞a̯̰͇̫͚̮͕ͬ͒̽̾ͯͫ̃̄̚̕͘ͅs̸̵ͦ̄̏ͬ̇̽ͪͬ҉̶̨̭̠͔̭͙̠̝̬̠̖t̶̴̢͚̠̭̙͎͚̞̞̖̯̘͉͓͉͍ͬ̓ͦ͆̒ͨͮͮ͗̑.̷̸̭̺̤͇̘̭̩̣̲̦̳͙̠̫̫ͥ͐̄̽͒̃̃͒̏̇͗ͭ͂̌͊͝

  


  
They woke up on the ground. Cold. It was cold. They shot up, knife still in hand. Odd. What happened? Did flowey manage to take control of the timeline and reset it? Impossible.

They were outside of the door to the ruins, they realized, turning around. They offhandedly wondered if those stupid brothers would be around again. They checked their stats. LOVE was still at 19. Now that was interesting. The timeline reset, but not entirely. They saw the menu glitch a little, flashing the stats of a weak LV 1 player. Ha. They were in control now. Standing up, they brushed themselves off, filled with

**D E T E R M I N A T I O N**

 

Papyrus stood near his normal position at his station, chewing on the lollipop in his mouth. Ever since the human had come through, his brother managed to get him to stop smoking. He said it was “bad for their tiny human body.” Heh. He frowned, thinking about the human. It wasn’t the first time a reset had occurred.

 

\---

 

They all remembered the first time. Chara had made it through the barrier alone, the underground losing all 6 souls in their possession as well as the Queen. Everyone was devastated at first, but they all wished the human happiness, as they had given the monster’s hope once again. They began to discuss plans of making it to the surface without needing to kill.

A few days later however, Papyrus jerked awake from his bed. He walked outside his room and looked around, feeling something was off. Alphys wasn’t on the couch and Sans was holding a pan, presumably cooking pancakes, but he stared at the pan as if it was the first time he’d ever cooked. They made eye contact, both baffled. Last time they knew, they were both talking to King Asgore, trying to brainstorm what the next steps the Underground would take. Before either of them could say anything, Alphys burst through the door with Undyne in tow.

“GUYS MY HOUSE IS BACK!” Alphys screamed loudly, excited but confused. They looked at Alphys, and then at Undyne. Undyne was stuttering, clutching a few papers in her hands.

“It… i- it seems there was a t- time anomaly… from _what_ though, I- I don’t know-” She looked down, flustered at everyone’s eyes on her. “B- but I checked the c- castle and… the Queen is alive. The souls are still there.” They all looked in disbelief. Time had… gone back? The few moments of silence was broken from the chatting from outside. They all left the house, looking to the crowd of people who had gathered around Muffet’s. From the crowd, Asgore emerged. Along with…

“Papy!!! Sans!!!!” They ran up, squeezing them in a tight hug. It was the human. They had come back for them. How, they did not know. But they were grateful regardless.

A few more resets had happened after that, Chara was having trouble solving the “puzzle” that was how to free them. Each time, the monsters always went back to their “spots” and played their “roles.” It was fun, almost. But… now.

 

\---

 

They were so close to victory, to _freedom._ A reset now was… unreasonable.

“why?” He asked to no one in particular. It’d probably be a few hours before Chara arrived, he’d have to wait until then. Sans called from a distance, running as he waved his arm as a hello, and Papyrus turned, giving a small wave back. As he got closer, the expression he saw on Sans’ face was exactly the one he was expecting. Worry.

“BROTHER WHY DO YOU THINK THE HUMAN RESET?” He asked, slowing down to a jog. He must’ve sprinted all the way from Alphys’ house to get here.

“i don’t know, bro. we can ask them when they get here.”

“IT ISN’T LIKE THEM TO DO THIS.”

“i know.”

“IM WORRIED.”

“me too bro.”

The two sat in silence for a while, staring at the snow beneath them. Papyrus took a sip of his honey, tapping some of his fingers on the table. Within the silence they heard the slam of the ruins door. Papyrus jumped, as did Sans. That was not expected. They weren’t supposed to be here for another few hours… He looked at Sans, who was wringing his hands and pacing around.

“don’t worry bro, i’ll take care of this. i’m sure they were just eager to see us again.” He reassured him with a pat to the pat to the back, but Sans just looked at him quietly before nodding, running off to get into his scripted “spot.” Just like usual. Just like usual.

 

\---

 

The second he saw the human he knew something was off. First of all, their clothing was a different color, and they definitely looked older. They were covered in dust… and holding a knife. Not good news. Never good news. They began walking, stiffly and emotionlessly. Another thing wrong. Papyrus ground his teeth. He did NOT want to interact with this kid, whoever they were. But it was in the script, right? He sighed, making way to his normal spot. He stopped the kid as usual, saying his normal drawl before holding out his hand. The kid took it. No response. The whoopie cushion just died out. Their hands were ice cold. He took the time to quickly check them while they were still in contact.

This skeleton was different from normal. Interesting. Not as edgy. Also interesting. Told jokes? Hm. They mentally noted these things as they turned around to take his hand. A new experience will be of interest to them, of course. Seeing these odd versions of the ones they were used to excited them almost. They could feel their stats being checked and they smirked. Idiots. All of them.

LV 19. They were LV 19. The child looked up at him with a knowing expression. They didn’t say anything, just continuing their path before he could even object. His brother was up ahead. He was in danger.

“kid wait-” He reached out. The knife was swung out and he jumped back, narrowly dodging the attack. The kid kept walking, as if it never happened. He ground his teeth on the lollipop stick, rolling it between his teeth. This was a problem. He teleported off.

“BROTHER WHAT ARE YOU DO-” He stopped as soon as a finger was over his mouth. He looked up at Papyrus surprised at the sudden movement. Papyrus was looking around with shifty eyes, and Sans felt his breath hitch. “Is it what I think it is?” He said in a small voice. Chara couldn’t have started to… kill, could they? They were too nice for that! Papyrus nodded sadly and Sans hugged him tightly, taking a deep breath. They should’ve expected it.

“its not our human though. its something different. we have to evacuate everyone to safety before anyone else gets hurt. we can’t fight them. not now.” Sans nodded, fighting back tears before running off to warn Snowdin. Papyrus closed his eyes before teleporting to Waterfall to alert everyone.

They were all in danger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes. The entire Underswap timeline remembers resets. Its quite literally the opposite of the Underfell timeline in this respect. Surprised? I am too.
> 
> (Also as usual comments are greatly appreciated!! They keep me writing.)


	6. The Old Grind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to these buddies! The trio decides to head over to Waterfall.

Sans was ushering Chara to Waterfall with Papyrus in tow, who blabbered about the many dangers of the marsh and how this was a terrible idea. Sans just blocked it out, instead paying attention to how Chara just giggled, letting themselves get pushed. Their feet dragged lines in the snow. It was a terrible idea, Sans agreed, but the kid said they needed to say hi to the Royal Scientist. Sans wasn’t about to use his energy teleporting them, so they chose to walk. It may be smart to talk to the river person for a ride… he balanced the different options as the ground began to change into something rockier, more stable.

Waterfall was the same as ever, solemn and quiet. Calm. The three walked down the path, through the water. Most were avoiding them, as Papyrus would glare at anyone who even dared to look their way. So far they had been going under the guise that they were delivering the human to the Capital, where they would be executed. The child was a little… too happy about walking through waterfall though. Many people doubted their intentions. Undyne was especially reluctant to let them pass.

“You found a human Papyrus?!” Undyne screamed, making Sans wince a little. He stepped a little bit forward to put more distance between Undyne and the human. An instinctive decision he didn’t know he made. Papyrus simply scoffed at Undyne.

“YOU THINK THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE PAPYRUS WOULDN’T FIND A HUMAN, HM? I AM THE HEAD OF THE ROYAL GUARD AFTER ALL. YOU SHOULDN’T BE SO SURPRISED.” He stood proudly, looking down on Undyne. Undyne snarled at him, readying a spear.

“So then why haven’t you killed it yet?”

Papyrus jumped at that, though his expression remained strong. “SINCE THIS IS THE LAST HUMAN REMAINING I THOUGHT THE KING MAY WANT TO MEET IT IN PERSON. MAYBE CELEBRATE A LITTLE.”

Undyne looked confused, but nodded after a few seconds of thought. The air was tense and Sans was trying his hardest to keep his expression from showing weakness. She looked at the human, who simply smiled and waved from behind Sans, and then looked at Papyrus, who seemed to be sweating. She narrowed her eyes. “Fine. I’ll let you pass. But I’m warning you Papyrus, you do ANYTHING that endangers our chances of getting to the surface and I’ll hunt your ass down. You can bet on that.”

Without another word they moved forward, albeit stiffly. Papyrus let out a sigh, and Sans rubbed at the bridge of his nose. That was a close one. Anyone with a soul would know how dangerous Undyne can be when she’s angry. She nearly killed Papyrus when he was first promoted as the new head of the Royal Guard, and she’s been trying to find ways to usurp the role ever since. Wait- They turned around, realizing the kid was no longer in front of them.

Chara was staring at a nearby echo flower with a look of sadness in their eyes. Undyne wasn’t too far away, glaring at the three of them. Sans was the first to approach them, hearing them whisper something quietly into the echo flower. “kid... you okay?” 

They spun around quickly, their expression turning into a smile just like always. They ran ahead once again, bounding through puddles and giggling all along the way. Sans noted how they weren’t as energetic as they were before. For the next few minutes, Chara continuously turned around, pretending as if they were saying hi, but their eyes were always scanning behind the two, looking for something.

They arrived at a large path surrounded by echo flowers, eerie whispers echoing all around them. Chara shuddered a little, despite the lack of a breeze. Their uneasy expression from earlier returned, and they were very unhappy with the setting. The other’s noticed their nervousness and tried to walk a little faster. They’d be out of there soon, hopefully. However, after a few minutes of walking, one echo flower stood out. In fact, it wasn’t even an echo flower. It was yellow. It stood tall with the rest of the flowers and Chara inspected it curiously. Just a normal flower. After poking it a few times, they began walking away. The skeletons looked at each other, not really knowing why ther-

“C-Chara, is that really you?”

The three turned around suddenly, hearing the high pitched voice. It was the flower. It talked. Papyrus screamed a little, backing up while Sans just looked back at Chara, perplexed. The flower had grown a face… what the fuck?

“you know this flower weirdo, chara?” Chara could only shake their head. The only flower’s they’d ever met were the hyper bouncing flowers that could only speak with simple words. This one was different… Chara walked to the flower and crouched down to get a better look at it. Small, torn up. It looked scared, almost. They held out a hand to shake, and Flowey flinched, seemingly expecting something different.

“Hi! My name’s Chara.”

Flowey looked down for a moment before looking back up, a little sparkle in their eyes. “I-Its me you best friend! As… Asriel…” Flowey couldn’t help but look away as he said that name. It hadn’t been used in quite a while, and he could barely say it without getting nervous. Last time he told anyone, they killed him on the spot...

“ASRIEL????” Chara almost jumped on the flower, who squeaked in surprise, ducking a little. “YOU’RE A FLOWER HERE? HOW COOL! IN MY WORLD YOU’RE A WEIRD CAT-DOG THING. ITS SO NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN!! I HAVEN’T SEEN YOU SINCE…. Well.. since we broke the barrier…” Chara sombered, looking at the ground, and loosening their grip on the flower.

“Broke the barrier? I… I’ve never gotten to do that before… Fr- Frisk always… wants to kill things… I’m worried because I haven’t seen them a- anywhere…” Papyrus and Sans both perked up at the mention of that name, Sans feeling a shiver go down his back at some unnamed fear. Papyrus simply froze where he was. Wind blew through the cavern and rustled the flowers.

“uh... buddy who’s frisk?” Sans asked, a little hesitant. He’s heard that name before, but where? Why was it so significant?

 

 

“It’s the human that is supposed to be in control of this timeline.”

 

The three gawked, and Chara stood up, looking even more confused than ever. Frisk… “So is that the person who’s been showing up in my save files?” Flowey gasped, looking to the side.

“...The files must be corrupted. You’re… n- not suppose to be here, Chara. You’re supposed to be in your own world…” Flowey looked at a nearby echo flower, saddened, before turning back to Chara. Papyrus was scratching his head at all of this new information. Timelines? Save files? Some person named Frisk? Sans was almost as bewildered as Papyrus, though his background in… less than ethical sciences gave him a little more insight into the parallel universe-y vibe this situation was giving him.

“SO THEN WHERE’S THIS… FRISK PERSON?” Papyrus finally asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence. Flowey shuddered before his eyes widened at the realization.

“They must be in Chara’s original timeline. Which… m-means...” Flowey shot up right next to Sans frantic. “Sans we need a teleport to the soul containment room, right now. If we don’t hurry, Chara’s entire world is going to be destroyed.” Chara gasped, scrambling towards the others. Their friends were in danger?

“buddy how do you know i can telep-”  
“Teleport now, ask questions later.” Flowey looked at him with determined eyes. Sans was sweating now, weighing his choices. Should he even trust this flower? Chara was trusting to everyone, and seeing how terrible everyone else in this godforsaken place is, he doubted this Flowey guy was very trustworthy with information.

“buddy as much as i’d love to, i’d be out like a light teleporting as many people as you,” he sighed, scratching his head. Flowey ground his teeth, looking between the different members of the party.

“Okay then, take me and Chara. Papyrus, head back to your house in Snowdin and wait for us there. If we aren’t there in 30 minutes, we’re dead.” Papyrus looked scared for a second, trying to protest. Chara looked to Sans, their fists clenched, eyes glowing red with determination.

“If there’s a chance my friends are in danger, we can’t waste any time. I need to save them,” Chara looked up at him with confidence. Curse his empathy for the ten millionth time by now. Sans grunted, reluctantly holding out his hand. Chara eagerly grabbed on, Flowey choosing to coil around Chara’s arm. Papyrus stared at the three nervously. He looked to Sans, giving him a small smile and a thumbs up.

Another crackle of energy and the three were inside the soul containment room. Without even a word exchanged Flowey went over to one in particular, the yellow soul, breaking its container and grabbing the soul. Sans was scream-whispering at him, panicking at the sudden action. Flowey tried to shush him, Sans’ voice echoing through the spacious room. He paced, his voice getting louder by the second as his panic settled in. They were going to get caught at this rate. 

“DO YOU WANT TO GET CAUGHT?!” Flowey finally snapped, effectively shutting him up. Flowey covered his mouth with a leaf, surprised at his own loudness. Chara giggled softly, but stayed watchful. They needed to hurry back to Snowdin, and fast. A clatter of armor got everyone moving. If they were seen, it’d only take a few minutes before they were apprehended, and they couldn’t have that. They needed to make it out. Sans once again held out his hand, his vision flicking between the kid and the entranceway, and Chara grabbed on as tightly as they could. As soon as Sans felt pressure on his hand they were gone.

 

 

Asgore only saw a blur of blue as he entered the chamber. His trident held high, he stared in disbelief at the broken container amongst the others. He barely hesitated, hurrying back up the stairs as fast as he possibly could, sending out every single able member of the Royal Guard. He was going to find that soul, even if it meant killing every single monster to get to it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wonder what they'll be doing : )
> 
> (as always comments are very very appreciated!)


	7. The Path to Success

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They prepare for the next step of Flowey's plan!

They collapsed inside of the house, Sans crumpled to the floor from exhaustion and excess use of his magic. Papyrus stood up from his chair, looking to the others. They had a soul. A real human soul. It was yellow. Were all human souls yellow? Papyrus shook himself out of his questioning. He had already drawn the curtains, so he ushered them upstairs and into his room with Sans in his arms. Unlike Sans’ room, it looked a lot nicer. Colorful sheets, posters on the walls, it looked like any other room. Chara offhandedly wondered if Sans had bought all of this for him. They looked back at Flowey, who was still caressing the soul with his leaves.

“What do we do now, Flowey?” Chara asked, looking back at Sans, who was just beginning to wake back up from his fatigue, stirring in Papyrus’ arms as he placed him down on the bed. Flowey nervously played with the soul in his hands, looking around.

“We need Sans’ knowledge of machines and science to help us with the next step. So… until he wakes back up we’re out of commission.” Flowey started to shiver. “Everyone in the whole Underground probably knows the human soul was stolen now. We’re gonna be found out soon if we don’t come up with a plan.”

Papyrus grabbed a towel and a granola bar from one of his boxes to give to Sans, who had covered his eyes with his arms after trying to open them, getting his eyes used to the much brighter light before sitting up slowly.

“i’m up i’m up. i just need a little more time to clear my mind…” He took the items Papyrus offered, eating the food and wiping his face down with a towel. Chara clicked their tongue. Chara rocked on their heels, looking at Flowey questionably.

“If I already have a human soul, why do you need another one?” Chara asked, turning their head. Flowey looked down at the soul, almost sad. The yellow soul. Justice. Wanting to help those in need and do what’s right. “It’ll help us get to where we need to go. If we’re going to travel to the other-”

KNOCK. KNOCK.

“OPEN UP PAPYRUS I KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE!!” A loud voice sounded from behind the door. Undyne. Sans immediately shot out of the bed, straightening out his clothing, with Papyrus standing tall immediately at the mention of his name. Flowey began shivering immensely, Chara choosing to pet one of his petals affectionately in an attempt to calm him down.

Papyrus turned to Sans, who was looking to him with panic in his eyes. He talked in a rushed, quiet voice as Undyne pounded on the door a second time. “I’ll distract her, you guys go get your… machine thingy running.”

Chara nodded feeling a rush of determination. They felt a save appear, but where? They checked all over the room: in the closet, under the bed, and even in the drawers. Papyrus and Sans were just staring with confusion, Flowey looking worried. After a few moments another knock was heard at the door and Papyrus sighed, alerting his presence before leaving the room, closing and locking the room behind him. Sans looked to Chara and Flowey, waving them over. 

“so what’s the plan flower boy?”

The house shook, voices echoed from downstairs and Sans cringed. Thing’s weren’t going as smoothly as he had hoped, it seemed.

His leaves held out the soul for the other two to see. “The machine. You know, the one in your lab? We need it.”

“m-machine? i uh have no id-”

“I know you have it, I checked yesterday.” Flowey rubbed the back of his stem nervously. This whole “being the only one to remember resets” was really taking a toll, wasn’t it? 

“how do you- you know what, i’m speaking to a talking flower and time traveling kid, i should be expecting this.”

There was more screaming and it seemed almost closer. Uh oh. Flowey hurried, shushing Sans, who glared at him because he wasn’t even talking. A small sheepish smile and he was back to explaining.

“Frisk’s soul will help track down the timeline, the justice soul will be for power. You know how to run that thing, right?”  
“yeah. what am i, an idiot?” At the silent looks he got from the other two, he backed up a little. “sheesh, tough crowd.”

“Well, just don’t forget to connect the blue and green wire. Last time you exploded.”

Sans blanched, stuttering as he denied that he would ever forget something like that. Flowey just watched him with a little bit of a scared look. If he made him too angry, Sans could kill him. He chided himself internally for getting too comfortable, but Chara stroked his petals. He took a deep breath. He could always count on Chara to understand. A few seconds later, Sans finished, sighing in defeat.

“alright alright. shit though, how are we gonna get in there? undyne’s probably got the house surrounded.” Sans briskly made his way over to the window, looking down at the ground. Sure enough, Doggo was down there, looking around with shifty eyes. After a thought, he realized he could probably knock him out if he could get the “drop” on him. Heh.

“Can’t you just teleport us in there?” Flowey asked, frustrated.

“what, you think i’m your personal transporter or something? i’ll pass out if i teleport you guys again. would you rather me be awake or asleep while you try to travel to that other world?”

Chara giggled, watching the two bicker for a bit before Flowey was once again cowering against Chara’s shoulder. Sans had leaned forward in frustration, but recoiled once he realized how scared Flowey was of him. Chara covered him protectively. Stupid flower. Stupid empathy.

Something knocked on the door and the three shot up from where they were sitting. Sans covering Chara’s mouth before they could say anything that would give them away. Hearing the sound of armor, it was most likely Undyne. As quietly as he could, Sans popped the window open, motioning for the others to get positioned near it. He hopped down, not so gracefully as he fell face-first on the snowy floor next to Doggo. The dog turned towards the noise suddenly, bending down into the snow trying to discern if that was his hearing playing tricks on him or not. Before Doggo could react though, he was impaled by several bones, dusting him quickly and quietly. Sans, still face down in the snow, gave a thumbs up to Flowey. He extended his vine down the side of the building, allowing Chara to climb down. Chara watched Sans as they climbed down, watching the dust flow with the wind around him, how it stuck to his clothes. They looked away when Sans turned up at them.

Once they reached the bottom, they heard the twinkling of a save point nearby. It was glowing behind a bush, and they ran towards it as quickly as they could. Flowey’s eyes widened at the sight of it, looking at Chara as they saved. The save file saved under the name “Frisk” this time, snapping Chara out of their usual energetic attitude.

“Huh?”

  
It cracked. 

It shattered. 

Chara backed up in surprise. What? They scooted back to the save star, attempting to save again, but it was glowing red now, refusing any more attempts. Flowey cursed under his breath, shaking. He held tighter onto the soul, taking in a deep breath.

“Frisk… what are you doing over there?” He asked to himself, looking down at the soul, beating softly in his grip. Sans watched from afar in concern as the two returned to him, less excited than they were before.

“you two get hit by a bus or something on your way back?” He chuckled at his own dark humor, and Chara attempted to smile, though it faltered after a few moments. He sighed, removing the key from his pocket and creeping over to the door. Greater and Lesser Dog were standing guard nearby. They had to be careful. The ruckus from inside the house could no longer be heard, which was worrying to say the least. Who knows what happened to Papyrus when he was talking to Undyne. Sans clenched his teeth. He wasn’t dead. He wasn’t dead. 

He unlocked the door carefully, letting the two in before he himself walked in. The door shut a little too loudly and he heard barking from one of the two dogs. Shit. Flowey slithered onto Sans’ arm, who at first tried to shake him off before growling and simply moving over to the machine. Chara sat near the door, listening to the two dogs talking nearby. It was mostly barks, but they could tell it was getting closer. The door was locked, thank god, but that didn’t stop them from pounding on it. Chara’s little body vibrated with every time Greater Dog hit the door. 

Sans was fiddling with the machine, typing in commands on the various screens and placing the yellow soul within the container. The machine wasn’t built for… cross-dimensional travel, but he’d make it work. Tweaking with the code wasn’t too much of a problem as long as it didn’t explode on them. Flowey was urging him on, helping out on some of the more basic mechanical tasks, such as connecting the right wires. Sans quietly observed him for a moment, wondering if he was also a time traveler like Chara was. That would explain his knowledge of the machine.

As the minutes passed, the pounding became more aggressive. Sans was sweating bullets. They were so close yet so far. They just needed one more thing! Chara was trying their best to hold the door, but they weren’t actually doing anything, as it was locked. At least the thought counted. They felt the hinges begin to bend under the strength. At this point the whole wall was going to be torn down with it. Flowey sat for a few moments, dumbfounded before he lit up. He popped up next to Chara, uttering a small plea for forgiveness before pricking their finger, collecting some of the blood on his leaf. Sans’ eyes widened but at this point he wasn’t going to question it. He moved back over to Sans slamming the sample of blood on the scanner.

“dude what the fuck?! that’s not gonna work-” The machine lit up, accepting the blood sample as coordinates. Sans looked down at Flowey, who simply smirked, proud of himself. Chara looked at the two, smiling as they still had their back against the door, getting ready to head over to them.

 

They didn’t even feel it at first. All they knew was that they suddenly were stuck. They saw the looks on Sans and Flowey’s faces before they registered the pain. Looking down, their blurry vision couldn’t see anything except for red and white. It was Greater Dog’s spear. It was pulled back out, making Chara fall over, coughing up blood. Sans stepped forward to try and help Chara up, but Greater dog burst through the door with one final push in that moment, the door weakened enough to fall over entirely. Undyne was shouting obscenities at the two from behind Greater Dog, unaware of the human who had been crushed underneath the door. As a last resort, Flowey pushed Sans into the machine with him and activated it, leaving Chara behind with a burst of energy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (comments are greatly appreciated! also i did not beta read this shit so if theres mistakes im too sick to fix hahaha-
> 
> ill probably be out for a few weeks but hopefully ill be back with the next chapter soon-ish)


	8. Somewhere Different

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans and Flowey find themselves... somewhere. They don't know where. So they explore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY SHIT IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG-   
> I SWEAR I RE-READ THIS LIKE 10 TIMES BECAUSE I STILL DONT KNOW WHERE I WANT TO GO FROM HERE-  
> HOPEFULLY THE NEXT UPDATE WON'T TAKE SO FUCKING LONG-
> 
> anyway enough of me yelling at myself-

The first thing Sans noticed was that he was inside of something metallic. He scraped his mind for the last thing he remembered as he tried to find a way out. It was quite dark except for that odd yellow glow from behind him. Something moved beside him and he screamed a little. Something covered his mouth.

“Stop freaking out, Sans!!” The voice whispered. That voice… Right. Flowey. The machine. Chara. Sans took some deep breaths to calm himself down. Flowey slithered to where the door would be, pressing a button. It opened with a large puff, exposing them to the outside. It was Snowdin? Sans crawled out with Flowey on his arm. 

“did... did it work?” He asked hesitantly, making his way to his feet. The machine was lodged in the snow a little ways away from the town. At least they were hidden for now.

Flowey looked at Sans, a worried look on his face. “It has to have worked. Why else would we be out here in the middle of the forest?” He was shaking now. Who knows what kind of destruction they could stumble upon. With Frisk in this timeline, the damage could be devastating. Flowey made his way back to the machine, wincing at the cold snow underneath him. He dislodged the soul, their only ticket out, and hid it in his petals. He turned around, ready to disembark, but Sans sat in the snow, covering his face.

“Sans…?”

“we left the kid there. they were dying, and we left them.” He squeezed his hands, stiffening up. “god they probably hate us now more than ever…” Flowey pat him on the head, looking to the town with a solemn expression.

“We should get going. Crying over Chara won’t do us any good here. They can just reset anyway. They’ll be fine. They’ll be fine.” He was convincing himself more than he was convincing Sans at this point. They both sat for a while in silence before Sans stood up.

“alright. lets go.” They headed towards the town, leaving the machine to cool in the snow.

The town was empty, lifeless. It didn’t seem they were early to the party. Sans sighed, looking around with Flowey secured tightly on his arm. “I guess Frisk’s been through here already… I hope everyone's okay,” Flowey said solemnly, looking for any suspicious splotches of snow. Grey areas that would indicate something… he shook his head. No. Don't lose hope yet. Maybe everyone was evacuated safely?

A crunch of snow echoed behind them, and Sans whirled around, ready to attack whoever was trying to sneak up. An odd child jumped back, seemingly ashamed before he began rambling.

“Ah man! Don’t tell anyone I’m here, okay? You told everyone to leave, but I wanted to see the human! I just wanted to see if I could… maybe change their mind. There’s just no way Chara would do that!” He said, shifting from foot to foot. This kid looked… weird. Reminded Sans of Monster Kid, but he looked more like a skeleton of some sort. Striped shirt gave him away though. He was definitely not old enough to fight for himself. Sans jumped out of his thoughts as the kid’s expression grew suspicious. “Wait… why do you look so different? Your teeth are so… scary looking.” Sans began to sweat, stumbling over his words before he interrupted him. “OH I KNOW! YOU’RE TRYING TO SCARE THE HUMAN! Darn I should have thought of that!” He laughed, letting out a small “mweheheh” before walking up next to him. “So where are we headed?”

God this kid never shut up, did he? Sans rubbed at the bridge of his nose, contemplating his options. “we? kid-” It was too dangerous to bring him along, but if they found anyone else from this timeline they could drop him off with them instead of leaving him all alone. And then it hit him. “wait, kid. how do you know about chara? the world… reset, right?”

The kid watched him as if he were the stupidest monster in the underground. “Yeah? And? That’s something everyone knows! It’s Chara’s ‘secret power’!”

Huh. So the kid remembered resets… and by the looks of it, so did the others. Maybe this meant the others were okay at the moment. He looked ahead. “maybe they'll be in hotland. seeing as snowdin is completely evacuated, i'd think waterfall is too… doesn’t take long for information to spread. especially with undyne around. heh.” They began walking, but as they passed by the Inn and the Shop, Sans stopped for a moment and smirked. Payback.

Flowey gave him a cold look as they continued walking. He shrugged with a smile on his face. For all the times those stupid bunnies ripped him off, he felt it was justified. He took a gander at the large bag of gold in his hand. Yup, definitely justified. The weird not-skeleton continued rambling behind him about “the magnificent sans” or something. He tried his best to block it out, but the longer he walked, the more he began to realize it was making him go crazy. 

“And then you said ‘Don't worry! I shall save you!’ and it was soooo cool!!!! Oh and this other time--”

“WILL YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP ALREADY!? I DON'T FUCKING CARE!” He roared, turning around in a fit of anger. His heart was racing, teeth flared. His natural instincts were taking over as panic set in. The kid backed up, fear in his eyes. Sans realized his mistake too late.

“S-Sans?” He heard him say. Sans was taking deep breaths, trying to calm his anxious irritation. Flowey looked at him, then at the kid. There had to be a way to save this situation. He continued to observe the two, Sans staring at the other smaller skeleton with guilt before returning his gaze to the snow.

“Look, kid. We’re all stressed out right now. It’d be better if you let him concentrate on what’s important. This is a very important mission we have going on here and we don't want to mess it up. He… he didn't mean it. Promise.” Flowey said softly, drawing the eyes of the other two.

Both of their expressions were unreadable, seemingly deep in thought before the kid turned to Flowey, serious, and he looked back, nodding. “YES SI-” He squeezed in on himself before looking up apologetically. “Yes sir!” He said in a small, excited whisper. Sans smiled, his heart still racing but manageable now. He knocked on the kid’s skull and they set off.

 

“hey kid, what’s your name anyway?” Sans said, turning with a sheepish smile.

The kid tapped his chin, as if he didn’t know before laughing and looking back up at him. “People just call me Gaster! Weird, right?” He laughed, but Sans didn’t bother reciprocating. His eyes went dark, the name sending a chill up his spine. He tried to push it off. Why did that name sound so familiar? Why did it make him feel like there were eyes on him? Flowey looked at him, worried suspicion clear on his face. Sans shook his head and just began to walk. One foot in front of the other.

 

\-----

 

As they expected, Waterfall was completely devoid of people. The shopkeeper though, was still there, oddly enough. Kind of a weird dude, but kind enough to give them a discount on food when they mentioned the kid. He was curious who he was, since he didn’t look like the shopkeeper he was used to. His hood hid his face though, so he didn’t question it. 

They now sat nearby the station, listening to the guy go on about the most recent of news, especially about the human. 

“I recommend you kids go and find a place to hide. That human has been running around here for a while now. Not sure if they moved on yet. I’ve already seen a few piles of dust while I went to pick up something from the dump. Hope its no one you know. Thanks to you and Papyrus’ quick thinking, most people have managed to find safety.”

“that’s good to hear, at the least... but we’re not going to hide. i need to find the “ Sans looked at his hands, turning to the kid, who was busy eating some crab apples. Or were they something else? They looked like crab apples, at least. Just a different color. Whatever. This place was weird.

They managed to convince Gaster to stay with the shopkeeper-- thank god-- and they moved forward through the echo flower fields. Most of the flowers were eerily silent, save for a few soft whispers. He leaned closer to one of them and immediately pulled away, simply walking faster.

 

“S̮̺̺͈͐͊͗̀̕ȧ̘̦̝ͧ̈̒ͦ̈́ͫ̿̾͞͠n͓̣̗̫̱͎͍̾̄̅ͭ̚s̸̪̳̻̻̖͌ͧ͐͆̄̔͞?̝̖̋̐͛ͨͥ̚͜͞”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always kudos and comments are always welcome!


End file.
